The Orange Men's Shed, a social group of retired men who get together for woodwork and other projects, was left without a home when the fire ripped through the structure.

However, they have found a temporary new home and hope to be back in their old building by Christmas.

President Hugh Laird said the members were meeting for weekly social morning teas at their new base in the Riverside Centre at the back of the Bloomfield hospital site.

He said they were also cleaning and clearing the site to make it COVID-safe.

Members had to stop meeting for three months this year due to the coronavirus lockdown laws.

However, he said they were glad to be back meeting again at the new premises.

"It's quite OK, it works for us," he said.

"We're only meeting on a social level.

"Bloomfield is no where near a patch on what the Lucknow [building was]," he said.

"It's adequate for the time. It was a godsend."

Mr Laird said the repairs and refurbishment of the Lucknow building was in the hands of Orange City Council at present.

"We've got a lease on this building until Christmas. We're hoping to be back at Lucknow by Christmas," he said.

"Council has been very good to us."

Mr Laird said they had 74 members before the fire and now had about 64.

He said some members had died since.

Mr Laird said he believed the devastation of the fire had a serious impact on some members.

After the fire last year Mr Laird said it caused extensive smoke and water damage to the building.

However, it did not spread to a metal working shed at the rear of the property.

After the blaze police investigators determined it had been deliberately lit.

They examined CCTV footage of the site.

The fire is believed to have started in the early hours of Saturday June 29 last year.

Orange Fire and Rescue NSW station officer Dane Philippe said last year the fire services were called to the fire at 2.45am and when they arrived eight minutes later they found part of the building alight.

Canobolas Zone RFS district officer Lachlan Allan said last year the original call was for a yard fire at Lucknow but on arrival the fire crews found the fire was burning on the outside of the community workshop building.

Mr Allen said the use of a thermal imagining camera confirmed the fire also spread to the ceiling.